


Twilight of the Gods

by bornforwar_archivist



Category: Xena: Warrior Princess
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-12-31
Updated: 2006-12-31
Packaged: 2018-11-29 13:02:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11441448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bornforwar_archivist/pseuds/bornforwar_archivist
Summary: By LissiaAll the gods on Olympus are after Xena and her child, all but two. The gods are fading and becoming desperate, but that's not all. An old evil has also returned. How is our Warrior Princess going to protect her child?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Delenn, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Born For War](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Born_For_War), which closed in 2015. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in March 2016. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Born For War collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/bornforwar).
> 
> Disclaimer: Characters aren’t mine, they belong to whoever. The story and Lissia, on the other hand is mine. Violence as always, I mean come on here, it is the Twilight of the Gods. Xena/Ares story. NO SUBTEXT! Takes up after Anthony and Cleopatra. Let me know what ya think Thanks!! 
> 
> Summary: All the gods on Olympus are after Xena and her child, all but two. The gods are fading and becoming desperate, but that’s not all. An old evil has also returned. How is our Warrior Princess going to protect her child?

Xena laid down next to a tree, setting her daughter down next to her and holding her protectively. They had been on the run for three months now. So much had happened during those three months. Athena had killed Gabrielle and Cyrene, Discord and Poseidon had killed Hercules and Iolaus, Joxer was killed by Apollo, Autoylocus by Hermes, and Artemis killed Yakut and Amarice. There had been attacks made on Xena and Eve, but each time they escaped. Her thoughts were interrupted by an all-too familiar chill running down her spine. She stood up and held her daughter protectively under her arm, "So have you come to kill me?" She asked the unseen visitor. Seconds later Ares appeared, "No, I’m here to help you," he stated. Xena laughed evilly, "Help me! Help me do what? Loose another child?!?" She exclaimed. He grabbed her shoulders in a vice grip and said, "No. There are four very mad goddesses on their way here. They plan to kill both you and Eve. If you’ll let me, I’ll transport both of you out of here and to someplace safe." The warrioress struggled to get out of his grip, but he was too strong, "No," she answered simply. By Xena, his chosen, saying no, he was unable to transport them and the next thing that they knew, there were four goddesses surrounding them, Athena, Discord, Artemis, and Demeter. Thinking fast Ares pulled Xena closer to himself and kissed her, which stretched his own shield out over her and Eve. At first Xena struggled against him, but after a few attempts that ended in failure, she gave into the warmth of his body and returned his kiss. His arms removed themselves from her shoulders and made their way down to her waist, while her free arm moved around his neck. The goddesses led their attack, but soon, unable to break Ares’s shield, gave up and disappeared. Ares and Xena slowly separated, both left in a shocked silence.   
  
There was a bright flash of pink light, leaving Aphrodite in it’s afterglow. Ares stepped in front of Xena and Eve protectively, though she only the warrioress only moved around him, "What do you want Aphrodite?" She asked the Goddess of Love. Dite wrinkled her nose, "Duh! Look at what just happened between you two. It was so sweet," she answered. The warrioress rolled her eyes, "Whatever," she mumbled. Ares looked at his sister, "Mind your own business Dite. I was just saving Xena and Eve from the family idiots," he explained. "Oh, is that what you call it? I was wondering," the Goddess of Love said, then changed the subject, "Hey Ar, I did come for another reason." At his motion for her to continue she said, "Another one dropped." He sighed heavily and asked, "Who?" The goddess tearfully replied, "Cuppie." Ares closed his eyes and shook his head, a hint of grief in his stance. Xena looked confused, "What are you two talking about?" She asked. He explained the previous conversation, "First Strife, the Callisto, then Hera, then Zeus, and now Cupid. We are all dying." Xena looked stricken, then Aphrodite spoke up, "We’re thinking that it will go by status, taking out the lower gods first." In return Xena asked, "How are they dying?" Aphrodite answered calmly, "The first four were murdered, but Cuppie, he just seemed to fade away." Towards the end the Goddess of Love started to cry, "I have to get back to Olympus," she said then disappeared. "I feel so sorry for her, Cupid and Dite were really close," Xena said. "Looks like we’re both losing family," Ares said quietly, his voice shaking a little. She turned to look at him and what she saw wasn’t the God of War, but a father who had just lost his son, "You okay?" She asked gently. He turned to her and replied, "Yeah, considering I just found out that my son faded away. Yeah, I’m fine." She grimaced at his sarcastic reply, then asked, "It isn’t going by status, is it?" He shook his head, "No, it isn’t," he answered. She sighed, "What’s after love?" She asked. He glanced at her, "Well, it’s either going to be the natural gods, the arts, or us war gods. You know, that includes you," he said. "What?!?" She exclaimed. He smiled. then explained, "You’re my chosen, that bonds us together. Chances are, I die from this, then so will you. That and the fact that when you were a warlord, I made you part goddess. You are actually a Demi- Goddess. You asked and I delivered. Truth is, when the Romans killed you, you could have come back without Eli’s help, if you would’ve put your mind to it." Xena stood in shook, "This isn’t possible, it can’t be," she whispered. "Yeah, it is. And it makes Eve seventy-five percent Goddess," he whispered back. She gave him a questioning look and he explained, "You’re half and Callisto was full. You do the math." She looked agitated, "Why are you still here?" She said challengingly. He replied, "Oh, I don’t know. I figured that sense you did kiss me back, that you wanted me to stay around. Anyways I don’t fell like getting yelled at." She rolled her eyes.   
  
There was a flash of dark light. Left standing in the afterglow was a young, thin, blue eyed, blond haired, girl, in a black, silk dress. Out of breath, she said, "Psyche, Bliss, Dite, faded." Then past out, Ares caught her and gently laid her down on the ground. Xena disgustedly asked, "Who’s that?" Distractedly, Ares replied, "My little cousin, Lissia. She’s on our side, don’t worry she won’t kill Eve, she won’t kill anyone." He was slapping her face gently, trying to wake the fallen goddess. "Stop slapping her," Xena ordered, grabbing his wrist. He jerked free, "Why you have a better idea?" He asked. She nodded. "Then be my guest," he added, motioning towards the young girl in his arms. She switched Eve around, then grabbed a bucket of water and dumped it on the girl. Lissia jumped up and sputtered, "What happened?" While Lissia dried off, Ares explained, "You showed up, said something about Psyche, Bliss, and Dite fading, then passed out." She nodded, then asked, "How’d I get wet?" Xena smiled, "I used the old fashioned way to wake someone up: water. I’m Xena," she said. The goddess looked irritated, "No really? I thought that you were Hera. Of course your Xena. Look who’s my cousin, he’s obsessed with you and you’re his chosen. Don’t you think I’d recognize you?" She said sarcastically. Xena turned to Ares, "I don’t like her. She’s way too much like me when I was younger. Who’s training her?" She asked, ignoring the girl. He was about to answer, when Lissia said, "No one’s training me. I’ve been out of that for a few years now. Ar trained me and now I work with him, I’m his assistant." The warrioress looked skeptical, "She any good?" She asked Ares. He nodded and said, "Yeah, she’s pretty good. Not as good as you my dear, but she’s good." Lissia shot Xena a triumphant look, then Xena asked, "You said that she doesn’t kill. How does that make her a good Goddess for the War department?" Lissia rolled her eyes, "It’s simple. He kills and I don’t. I balance him," she explained. "Then what’s she good for?" Xena asked the god of War. He quickly answered, "She’s good with tactics and battle plans. She can also deal with my followers better than I can." Lissia looked happy and Xena nodded, "She’ll do," she said at last. Lissia looked highly offended, "Looky here, little mortal, I don’t need your approval. I don’t need anyone’s approval or help. You should be happy that I’m on your side, instead of Athena’s. I’m sure she could use the extra help!" She exclaimed loudly, then disappeared. "Ohh, I think I hit a nerve," Xena said quietly. Ares nodded agreement, "Yeah, a big one," he said. "What happened to her?" She asked gently. He sighed heavily, "She used to be a normal mortal, living with a normal mortal family, then Callisto murdered her family and burned the village. At that point Lissia got really mad and exploded a near by building. she came to me and I recognized her as my cousin. I trained her and I knew that she would become powerful, but everyone else expected her to fail. Once she’d proven herself worthy, she said that the only one she’d ever ask for help or try to prove herself to would be me," he explained gravelly. Xena shook her head, "Someone else that hates me because of who I used to be," she said quietly. Ares quickly replied, "No, that’s not it. You tried to judge her and that set her off. She’s mad at Callisto." She replied, "But I created Callisto." He smiled, "You also killed her. To Lissia you were a saint, until that little mess-up today," he explained, then added, "It’s late. I’ll leave so you and Eve can get some sleep." She nodded, "Thanks," she said uncomfortably. "I’ll come back in the morning, until then you and your daughter will be safe," he said, then at her nod disappeared.   
  
Xena sighed, then looked at Eve and asked, "What just happened?" The baby gurgled in reply. "Yeah, how would you know. You’re just a baby. I’m treating him like I used to, back when I was his warlord. Maybe some of the old charm is still there, the old feelings. What am I saying?!? I must be insane!" She exclaimed. The baby shrieked in excitement. Xena laughed, "Yeah, I’m insane." She laid down and placed the baby on her chest. soon they were both asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Xena jumped up, grabbing her sword and facing her attacker. She squinted in the darkness and made out the form of Artemis, "What do you want?" She asked the Amazon Goddess. The goddess softly replied, "I am fading like the others before me, Aphrodite and cupid. In a few minutes I will be no more. But, before that happens I wanted to speak with you." Xena looked her up and down and could tell that she was fading. The warrioress silently picked up Eve, then motioned for the goddess to talk. Artemis nodded, "I’m sorry that I hurt you Xena. I murdered your friend Yakut and then, your daughter, Amarice and tried to have Eve killed as well. They were Amazons, I shouldn’t have been the one to kill them. I don’t believe Eve is the one causing this. You must discover who or what is causing the inialation of the Olympian gods. I’m sorry Xena, please forgive me," she said. All that was left of the goddess was her face and as that began to fade, Xena uttered, "I will and I forgive you." The Amazon Goddess smiled, then was completely gone. Xena sighed and shook her head, "Ares," she called shakily, she knew that she had to tell him what happened. "Well, here goes nothing," she said to Eve, then called his name again, a bit louder this time.   
  
She heard a noise behind her. She turned to see Ares behind her, "You called," he said calmly. "Yeah, what took you so long?" She demanded. He smiled, then said, "Lissia." she nodded, that explained allot. Then she said, "Artemis has faded. She came to me and apologized. she doesn’t believe that Eve is causing this." He nodded, "I know. She came to me too and said something about Amarice. Wasn’t she the annoying little Amazon that traveled with you and Gabrielle for a while?" She nodded and calmly replied, "Yeah, she’s also our daughter which Artemis murdered." Ares looked stunned, "Our daughter?" He asked. She nodded, "Yeah, I had her a few days before leaving for Chin. I left her in a nearby village," she explained. He nodded in understanding, "If Eve isn’t the one causing this, then who is?" He asked, changing the subject. Xena shook her head in confusion, "I don’t know. I don’t know," she said. Then she started to go through the possibilities, "Other gods? No. The titans? No. What about plain old nature?" He shook his head, "Impossible, we’ve already thought about that," he said. She wrinkled her brow in concentration, "This all started with Stife’s death. And that happened right after Gabrielle poisoned Hope and-." Ares cut her off, "Hope and Dahok are getting revenge on all of Olympus. Of course." A light flickered on in Xena’s head, "Hope couldn’t re-enter our world after Destroyer killed her and Dahok couldn’t find another vessel to use. So they continued the Twilight through Eli and his peaceful ways, turning the mortals against you. Then the worshippers would die down and you’d all just fade into nothingness," she explained. Her snapped his fingers, "That’s it. It has to be," he exclaimed. They both grinned in satisfaction.   
  
Their grins disappeared when Lissia appeared, "Good job. Now how do we stop this and convince the other gods that Eve isn’t their terminator?" She questioned. Xena sighed heavily, "Can we figure that out in the morning? It’s the middle of the night and I’d like to get some sleep," she said harshly. "Fine," the goddess said, then disappeared. Ares nodded turned to leave, but was stopped by a firm hand on his shoulder. "Wait. Who’s next?" Xena asked, a little worried. He looked at her, "It started with love, now natural, next is either the arts or war. My guess is the arts. Warlords are very loyal to their wargods," he explained. "Good, we still have time. Let me know who’s disappeared in the morning," she ordered. He nodded and said, "Yes Princess Xena." She gave him the look and started to say something, then stopped when she saw that he was gone.


	3. Chapter 3

Xena awoke to the smell of fish cooking. She groggily opened her eyes and looked around the camp. Then her eyes fell on the form of a girl sitting by the fire, cooking fish and reading one of Gabrielle’s scrolls. Xena’s eyes widened as she recognized the girl, "Gabrielle?" She breathed disbelievingly. The girl turned towards her, "Xena! You’re up," she exclaimed, running towards her friend’s side. Still not believing her eyes Xena said, "But you’re dead. Athena killed you when we got back from Egypt." Gabrielle nodded, "I know. All hell broke lose in the underworld. A young girl brought me here and told me that I was now alive. She said that she was a friend," she explained. "Oh by the gods," the warrioress said embracing her friend, "That was Lissia. She’s Ares’s second in command. We can trust her."   
  
The two friends broke their hug as Ares and Lissia appeared. "Xena, want an update?" Ares asked, paying no attention to the bard. She nodded. Lissia replied, "Okay, lots happened while you were sleeping. Hades, Charon, Celeste, Demeter, Persephone, the nymphs, fates, and furies are all gone. Both Poseidon and Triton have started fading. The siren’s will fallow, leaving Hestia to be the last in the natural department." Xena looked discouraged, "It’s happening too fast," she said. She looked at Gabrielle and could see that the bard was very confused. "Dahok used Eli to turn the mortals away from the Olympians. Without worshippers they will fade into nothingness," the warrioress explained. The bard nodded in understanding, then looked more confused than before, "Why do we care about the gods, Xena?" She asked. Ares replied, "Because without me and Lissia, the other gods will kill you two and Eve." Xena nodded in agreement. "Our biggest threats are Apollo and Athena," Lissia said, then collapsed in an unconscious heap. Ares quickly knelt down and supported the girl’s head. suddenly, there were two flashes of light, leaving Apollo and Athena in their afterglow. "She’s mortal," Athena laughed. "And poisoned," Apollo added, also laughing. "She’ll be dead within the hour," he added. "Why? Why her?" Ares asked. Athena laughed, "We couldn’t get to you, but because of her mortal ties she was easy to turn mortal. We had to get rid of little Xena’s protection. Now all she has is you to depend on, well, that and her own mortal strength," she explained. "Oh and Ares. Poseidon, Triton, the sirens and Hestia are all dead," Apollo said. Then both he and Athena disappeared.   
  
Xena knelt down beside Ares and rested her hand on his shoulder. "I’m so sorry. I know what she meant to you," she whispered. He looked at her and said, "It wasn’t your fault. I told her that this could happen, she helped because she wanted to." She shook her head, "I still feel responsible," she said. She ran a hand through Lissia’s hair, then kissed Ares on the cheek and got up to take Eve from Gabrielle. "Gabrielle, go to town, get us passes for the next ship to Britannia," Xena ordered. His head shot up, "Britannia?" He asked. "Yeah, you going to come with us?" Xena asked. He nodded. "What about Lissia?" The bard inquired. "She’s already dead," he answered, gently laying her down. "Go," the warrioress ordered. "Okay, okay, no need to get snappy," her friend said, running towards the nearest town.   
  
Seeing that the bard was gone, Ares asked, "How’s she get here? I thought Athena killed her." Xena shook her head, "she said that Lissia brought her back," she replied. He looked confused, "Lissia was never able to bring people back from the dead. The other gods wouldn’t allow it and as long as one of them stands that will stand," he replied. Then she said, "It isn’t Gabrielle. It’s Hope." His head shot up, "How do you know?" He inquired. "I just do. It’s instinct. I know Gabrielle and that’s not Gabrielle. It’s Hope, that and the way she looked at you. I know that Gabrielle hated you, but she could never direct that much hatred towards one person," she explained. "What are we going to do about her?" He asked, a little concern in his voice. She looked confident, "Nothing. We’ll play along, then when she’s least expecting it, I’ll kill her," she answered eyes flaring at the idea. "I’ll be back in a few seconds. I’m going to go bury Lissia next to her mortal family," he said disappearing. She sighed heavily and leaned up against a tree, "Oh, Eve, what am I going to do?" She asked the sleeping infant in her arms, then slid down the tree to a sitting position.   
  
Ares returned soon after he’d left. "Xena, why are we going to Britannia?" He asked. "That’s where all of this started. Britannia. So, I figured that would be the best place to start," she answered, sharpening her sword. He looked confused, "Start what?" He asked, sitting down besides her. "Start searching," she said simply. He then asked, "For what?" She rolled her eyes, then replied, "For a way to destroy Dahok and his daughter." He nodded, "I see," he said at last, as Gabrielle walked into the camp. "Okay, we have an hour to get to the dock and get on the ship. We need to get supplies here, I doubt they’d sell us anything in Britannia," the young bard said. Xena stood and placed Eve on her hip, then said, "Let’s go. We have nothing and need everything." They all nodded, then headed towards town.   
  
Upon arriving at the small village, Xena gave orders, "Gabrielle, go get food, ma and Ares will get the rest. We meet back here in half an hour. Don’t be late, the ship leaves in forty-five minutes. And remember keep an eyes open for the other gods, they want us dead." They headed in their separate directions. "Greek fools," Gabrielle said out of the warrioresses hearing range. Xena and Ares were walking towards the opposite end of town. Eve was fussing and squirming, Ares offered to take her, but Xena refused to let him near the child. He, than asked, "What else do we need, other than food?" Xena shook her head, "One thing. Now, quickly transported us to my mother’s Inn," she ordered. He shrugged, took her hand, and transported them to Cyrenes Inn, or at least what was left of it. "Stay here," she said. Then against her better judgement, handed Eve to him, "I’ll be right back." She quickly ran up the stairs to her mother’s room. She went over to the bed an moved it away from the wall. She moved her hands over the floor boards, until she found a loose one. Removing it, she stuck her hand in the hole. She found a small leather pouch and in it an even smaller medicine jar filled with a red liquid. Xena smiled and tucked the pouch into her bodice, then carefully put everything else back in the small hole and covered it with the board, then moved the bed back over it. She went downstairs and collected all the good food and stuck it into a large leather bag.   
  
Xena walked out of the Inn, handed Ares the leather bag, took Eve, and said, "Let’s go before we’re late." He nodded, then asked, "Xena, why do you have Hinds Blood?" He wasn’t too worried, but all the same he wanted to know why she had it, just in case. Xena smiled, then answered, "Hope, Dahok, and any other god that gets in our way, that’s why I have the Hinds Blood. I figured we might want to have a way to get rid of any annoying people." He nodded, then transported them back to the small village.   
  
Ares, Xena, and Eve quickly got to the ship dock. "Got everything?" A voice asked from behind them. They both turned around to see Hope smiling back at them. "Yeah Gabrielle, we have everything, plus some extra food. And as long as you don’t eat as much as you usually do, we’ll do fine, just fine," Xena said laughingly. "Huh? Oh! I get it," Hope finally said, "Real funny Xena." Ares raised an eyebrow at the cover up, but Xena dismissed it, "Let’s go, guys," she said quickly. They boarded the ship and went down to the apartment they were all sharing.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey Gab, you okay? Ya look a little green," Ares said after awhile of being on the ship. Xena smiled. "I hate ships, I hate water, I’m gonna go puke my guts up and get some fresh air," Hope said rushing out of the little compartment. The warrioress sighed, "She’s very good at this. There’s hardly a difference in her and her mother." The god shuck his head and picked Eve up off the bed, "How are we going to keep her away from Eve?" He asked, rocking the baby. "Careful Ares, you sound like you might care," Xena said sarcastically. The God of War looked irritated, "Look Xena, I care about you and your daughter. I don’t want anything to happen to either of you two," he said. She laughed, "Don’t worry so much. She wants the gods to be after Eve, she won’t do anything to destroy her cover up," she replied, lovingly stroking the child’s head. "When we get to Britannia, your strength is going to be weakened, maybe even enough to turn you into a mortal. Hope would be able to kill you and you know she would if she ever got the chance. The only one of us that is safe here is Eve, that’s the only one of us that she needs living," Xena said quietly. He put his free arm around Xena, "Don’t worry. You’re still my chosen one, even if you are a type of goddess, you’re still my chosen. If worse comes to worse, I can feed off of you," he replied. She rolled her eyes and sarcastically replied, "How appetizing." He smiled, "I like to think so," he said, leaning in towards her. Their lips met in a passionate embrace and didn’t break until they heard, "By the gods, you two are, are, are, are..." They turned to see Hope in the doorway, open-mouthed. "In love," Xena filled in. Hope just stared, but Ares looked at her in shock. "Yes, I’m in love with you, I have been sense I don’t know when," she told him, offering to take the sleeping infant from him. He handed her over to her mother gently, then looked towards the doorway, "You going to come and sit down, Gab?" He asked the girl. She smiled, "sure, but I have to eat. The captain refuses to give his passengers food. It’s terrible," she whined. Xena rolled her eyes, "It’s all in the bag at the end of the bed," she informed Hope. The daughter of Dahok smiled and grabbed the bag. Sense there was no way they could build a fire on the ship, they ate a cold meal of jerky and trail mix.   
  
The next morning they awoke to a surprise. Xena was standing in front of the mirror in a red sun dress, cutting her hair with her chakram. She quickly swiped the deadly weapon through her hair , until it was just above her shoulders. "Xena what do you think you’re doing?" Ares asked. She turned, "Simple. Me and Gabrielle have been to Britannia and I doubt they would have very many pleasant thoughts about us, if they ever saw us again. Gabrielle’s appearance has changed quite a bit sense then, but mine really hasn’t. So, I figured it was time for a small make-over. What do you think?" She explained. He stuttered a bit, then exclaimed, "Wow, big change. It looks great, different, but great." hope sat up and rubbed her eyes, "Wow Xe!! Nice change! You look so rad!" She exclaimed loudly. Xena smiled, then said, "Thanks guys. Look, I’m going to go find out when we’ll reach the dock, you two stay here and watch Eve." They nodded and she left the little apartment.   
  
Hope smiled evilly, then asked, "So Ares, you using her like you’ve used everyone else?" He mentally counted to fifty, then answered, "No Gabrielle. I really love Xena and I believe you should know that by now." She laughed, "The only person you love is yourself," she said. Getting irritated, he loudly said, "Looky here little girl, you know very little about me and Xena. You know less than Dite did before she faded away into nothing. Maybe if we’re lucky you’ll fallow in her footsteps!" Hope’s face flashed with anger, "You son of a Bacchae!" She yelled. Suddenly Eve screamed and burst into tears. Xena rushed into the room, "What are you two doing in here?" She shrieked, the scooped up the wailing infant, cooing at her. then she shot a dirty look at her two companions. Hope shrugged, "Small disagreement," she muttered. The warrioress shuck her head, "You two just try to get along from now on or at least take the ‘disagreements’ away from Eve," she replied, still a little angry. They nodded, then Ares asked, "So when we reaching port?" The Warrior Princess quickly replied, "Soon, about half an hour or so." He nodded. "The sooner I get off this ship the better," Hope said, a hint of sickness in her voice. Both Xena and Ares laughed.


	5. Chapter 5

They soon arrived at the dock. "So Xena, what’s the plan?" Hope asked. The warrioress glared at her, "We’re going to go over to that Inn and get a room, then I’ll explain the rest when we are in private," she answered, irritation in her voice. "Gods, Gab, even I knew better than to ask that one," Ares said, moving past her and heading towards the Inn. The girl just sneered at him, "Bastard," she muttered, before catching up with the others.   
  
They got a room and quickly went up to it. "Well," Hope stated impatiently. "We’re going to stop the problem at its roots. If I’m correct people should be flocking towards Dahok’s destroyed temple’s ruins, here in Britannia. Boadicea has already started an attack on the followers. She’s waiting for us to come and destroy the temple’s ruins and Dahok, that is if we can," Xena explained. Hope then asked, "How’s that going to stop the Twilight?" Recognizing the answer to her question, Ares answered, "Easy. People will stop worshipping him, if there is no him to worship." Hope then added, "And they’ll be released from his grasp, they’ll return to you Olympians. It all makes sense now." She smiled evilly and Xena tensed a bit. "Thank-you, Xena, Ares. Father will now hear of your plans and will be ready to stop y-." Hope was gloating, when a dagger coated in Hind’s Blood hit her in the chest. "Go to Hell, Hope," Xena said in disgust. Ares smiled, "Nice shot Xe," he said. She smiled in satisfaction, "Thanks. Now let’s get going," she replied. He grabbed their bags and handed Eve to Xena. They quickly left the village, hopping to escape before someone found the corpse.   
  
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Before they knew it, the whole town was looking for them, expecting an explanation. The guards brought them before the Inn’s keeper and they were forced to explain. Xena quickly said, "That back-stabbing murderer was trying to kill our daughter." Ares shot her a look of surprise at the usage of the word ‘our,’ but played along, "We would have informed someone, but my wife went hysterical and insisted that we leave immediately." The keeper nodded knowingly, "Ah! Women! I know how that goes sonny, but you’ll have to pay me thirty dinars to make up for the trouble you’ve caused," the old man said. The war god nodded and handed him thirty dinars. then, they turned to leave, but the guards still blocked their path. Agitated, Ares turned and said, "Yes." The man smiled, "Just one more thing young man. Where are you taking your family?" Ares sighed and was about to answer when Xena quietly said, "To worship at the ruins of the pure one’s temple." The man looked mad, "Leave us! We don’t except those people who indulge themselves in that evil cult," he yelled. The warrioress pretended to be hurt by his harsh words and Ares put his arms around her in consolation. "We’ll be leaving then," he said, "Come along dear, we’ve caused these poor people enough problems." they then, quickly left the town, heading towards the ruins of Dahoks center temple.   
  
They arrived in a days time. Boadicea and her army were camped near by and seamed to be the only humans around. Xena marched into the camp, Ares close behind her. Boadicea was standing near a fire pit. "So, all the members of Dahok’s cult dead?" Xena asked. The woman turned, "Yes and Xena, I believe I know where Dahok is." At Xena’s motion for her to continue, she said, "There was a hole in the center of the ruins, "It seemed like it had been used as a sacrificial fire tunnel at one time. But, to be sure none of the traitors had escaped us, I sent twenty of my best men down into the dark tunnel. We heard them land and walk around a bit, then suddenly, their crispy bones were sent up to us on a stack of fire." Ares nodded, "Sounds like Dahok to me, he always seemed to like fire a little too much." Xena also nodded, "In the morning, Ares and myself will go down the tunnel and kill him, then destroy the ruins of his temple. I’ll need you to watch Eve and I mean really watch her! But, now we all need some sleep." The warrior nodded and replied, "At the far end of the camp there is an empty tent next to mine, you can use it for tonight. Tomorrow evening, we are leaving, so you must be back by then, otherwise I’ll take the infant with me. Drop the infant off in my tent before you leave in the morning." Xena quickly said, "Don’t call her infant, her name is Eve, refer to her as that, not infant. Good night, Boadicea." At that, Xena and Ares headed towards there tent.


	6. Chapter 6

They left before dawn the next day. Both had coated their swords in Hind’s Blood and were wearing full armor. Before going down into the tunnel, Ares turned to Xena and asked, "Look Xe, when we’re all down with this and back in Greece, will you let me be a father to Eve?" The Warrior Princess smiled and quickly kissed him, "You already are. Now let’s go kick this things evil butt!" She said, starting down into the hole. He smiled and followed her. It wasn’t long before they hit the bottom and started moving forwards causiously. They soon found themselves in a large cavern with a dragon. "Looks like and Ares and his little girl fired Xena have come to challenge the mighty Dahok,"? it said evilly. Xena smiled, "Actually we’ve come to kill you," she stated flatly. He laughed, as did Xena and Ares. "Enough games. I look forward to picking my teeth with your bones," the creature yelled, the lunged at them. Both flipped over him and landed on the dragon’s back. They glanced at each other, smiled, then drove their swords threw the creature’s back and into it’s chest. "Looks like your plan has failed, Dahok," Ares said as the one great evil breathed it’s last breath and died. She pulled on his arm a bit to get his attention, "Let’s go," she said quietly, "I don’t like being away from Eve." He nodded and followed her out. The exited through the hole and moved a distance away from the ruins. Once there, Ares blew it to smithereens, cave, ruins and all. Both warriors smiled with pride at the full destruction of Dahok’s cult. 


	7. Epilogue

Xena and Ares got Eve from Boadicea and then returned to Greece. They were greeted by Athena who informed them that she was now aware of Dahok and Hope’s role in the Twilight of the Gods. She also apologized for striking against Xena and Eve and told them that the only gods left were herself, Ares, Discord, Hermes, and Apollo. None of that mattered to them though. they were in love and planned to live happily ever after.   
  


The End


End file.
